CONSERVATION officers have reassured worried Warndon Villages residents that the felling of oak trees in Warndon Wood is all for a good cause.

Walkers in the wood - one of Worcester's green spaces between Parsonage Way and the M5 - were concerned about the felling of eight oaks.

But Worcester City Council's Project Greenspace officer Rory McClure said the controlled felling of trees was done to encourage wildlife - including butterflies, bluebells and songbirds - back to the wood.

"The work is primarily done to bring light on to the hazel coppice that grows underneath to encourage the floral diversity," said Mr McClure.

"It may seem odd but it's the best policy when we're dealing with traditional woodlands that were intensely managed.

Hazel trees

"The woods have been the natural home of bluebells and wood anemone for centuries - all of which could be considered at risk if conditions are not right for them.

Recent years have seen the hazel trees thicken to the point of blocking out the light that many of them need."

Mr McClure said the problem dated back to the end of The First World War, when all the trees were cut down and the new ones, which can be seen today, were planted.

"If you look at the best managed forests, they are selectively felled," he said.

"Oak trees are taken out on a 100 or 150-year cycle, which improves and regenerates the natural environment."